


The Perfect Christmas

by magicsophicorn



Category: Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist (TV)
Genre: Christmas Fluff, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-26
Updated: 2020-12-26
Packaged: 2021-03-11 05:34:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28340061
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magicsophicorn/pseuds/magicsophicorn
Summary: Joan tried to give Zoey the perfect Christmas, but it doesn't entirely go to plan.
Relationships: Zoey Clarke/Joan
Comments: 8
Kudos: 28
Collections: Zoey's Playlist Secret Santa 2020





	The Perfect Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [idinathoreau](https://archiveofourown.org/users/idinathoreau/gifts).



> ZEP Secret Santa fic for idinathoreau
> 
> Hope you enjoy it! Sorry it's a day late.

The look of disappointment on Zoey’s face still haunted Joan.

She shouldn’t have been surprised really.

Of course Zoey would be the kind of person who loved Christmas, and all the trimmings that came with it.

But Joan really hadn’t been prepared for the way her partner’s face had fallen when she’d casually mentioned in conversation that she wasn’t planning to put up any decorations at her house, or even to do anything special on the day itself as she didn’t really bother celebrating Christmas.

She’d spent far too many holidays alone, with Charlie away ‘working’, or more likely, screwing his way along the Eastern seaboard, for her to have any kind of fondness for the season.

It obviously meant a lot to Zoey though. Joan could understand that. Especially this year. It would be their first Christmas together as a couple. And Zoey’s first Christmas without her father.

Her mind made up, Joan picked up her tablet and opened the Amazon app.

She was going to give Zoey the perfect Christmas, no matter what.

\-------------------------------

Zoey had always loved Christmas, ever since she was a little girl.

It had always been such a big celebration in the Clarke household and she had so very many happy memories of Christmases over the years.

Like the year her dad had forgotten to turn on the oven to cook the turkey and no one had realised until it was too late, so they ended up having Chinese takeout for Christmas dinner.

Or the year that David had written and performed for them his very own one man Christmas musical (the VHS recording of which had suspiciously disappeared the year that he started high school, never to be seen again).

She also loved the little things - decorating the house with her dad, baking cookies with her mom, sneakily checking out the gifts under the tree with David to see if they could work out what they were getting.

She loved it all.

She especially loved the big party her parents threw every Christmas Eve for all their friends and neighbours. She’d had her very first taste of alcohol at one of those parties. And her first kiss under the mistletoe.

Of course, there was no party this year.

This year all of those happy memories _hurt._

She wouldn’t be woken up by her dad singing carols as he made breakfast on Christmas morning. She wouldn’t see his joy as he opened his gifts, or hear his laugh carrying through the house lounder than any other sound at the party.

Part of her was dreading Christmas this year. How could she enjoy it when such a big part of what made it special would no longer be there?

But the part of her that loved Christmas was still hopeful.

After all, this would be her first Christmas with Joan.

They had only been together for a few months and she had been looking forward to making new holiday memories with her during this special season.

That was until Joan had said that she didn’t really celebrate Christmas.

Zoey had tried to hide her disappointment. After all, she could understand why Christmas might not feel so special if you didn’t have loved ones to spend it with. From what little she knew of Charlie he didn’t seem like the type to do anything nice for anyone other than himself, and she knew that Joan didn’t really get on with the few relatives she had left.

So as much as it pained her to do so, Zoey had accepted that they probably weren’t going to do anything special for Christmas together.

She had still got Joan a gift though.

Surely Joan wouldn’t mind that?

\-----------------------------------------

On Christmas Eve Zoey let herself in through Joan’s front door and immediately stopped in her tracks.

In all the many times she had visited the house over the past few months she had never once seen a single item out of place. Joan’s house was the very definition of ‘minimalist’. Granted, some might also describe Zoey’s flat as minimalist, but hers was the minimalism of poor adulting skills. Joan’s was the minimalism of rich people.

However minimalism was the polar opposite of what she was seeing right now.

It looked like the Christmas department of Macy’s had exploded inside Joan’s house.

In one corner of the living room stood a large real Christmas tree, but it was completely bare.

There were dozens of strings of tinsel draped over all the couches, and Hermés was batting several baubles around the floor which had spilled out of a box almost as large as Zoey which seemed to be full of them. A string of lit fairy lights blinked and twinkled their way along the floor, leading off into the kitchen.

Zoey stared in open mouthed shock at the Christmas carnage before her.

“What the f…”

She didn’t manage to finish that sentence, the thought interrupted by the intense blaring of the fire alarm going off and a cloud of black smoke pouring out of the kitchen.

“Joan!”

Zoey dashed towards the kitchen, terrified of what she might find.

As she rounded the corner she saw Joan step away from the oven, coughing loudly through the billowing smoke, and she was wearing a… a Santa hat?

What the hell was going on? Had she entered the twilight zone or something?

“Joan?”

Her girlfriend turned to face her, and her face fell.

It wasn’t a reaction Zoey was used to receiving from Joan, and it kinda hurt.

“What’s going on? What is all this? I thought you didn’t do anything for Christmas?”

Joan looked down at the baking tray in her hands, and Zoey followed her gaze. There were several round lumps of what looked like charcoal, but were probably originally supposed to be cookies.

Joan sighed and dropped the tray on the kitchen counter.

“I’m so sorry Zoey. I just… I wanted to give you a perfect Christmas. I know it means so much to you, and this year will be so difficult. You deserve the best and I wanted to give it to you, but I… I’m not… I can’t… This isn’t…”

Joan gestured around her at the bombsite in her kitchen. There was flour and sugar everywhere and the smoke was still billowing around the ceiling.

She looked so utterly defeated, and Zoey felt her heart melt.

“Oh Joan, thank you. It _is_ perfect.”

Joan scoffed, but looked at Zoey fondly.

“You don’t have to humour me, I know I’m not exactly a domestic goddess.”

Zoey stepped forward and wrapped her arms around Joan’s waist, pulling her closer.

“Perhaps not a domestic one, but you are definitely a goddess.”

Joan laughed and kissed the top of Zoey’s head.

“Flatterer. I am sorry I suck at Christmas though.”

Now it was Zoey’s turn to laugh.

“You don’t suck at Christmas. Do you know why I love the holiday season so much?”

“Because you’re a walking cliché and the living embodiment of happiness and joy?”

Zoey snorted.

“Is that really what you think of me? Wait don’t answer that. Anyway, no, it’s not because of the cookies or the decorations or gifts, although those things are all nice. It’s because you get to spend lots of time with the people you love, and you do all those Christmassy things _together_. So as long as I get to be with you, then this Christmas will already be perfect, you don’t have to do anything else.”

She felt Joan tremble in her arms and she hugged her tighter. She would never understand how Charlie could have treated Joan the way he did, how he could not want to spend every minute he could with her. Zoey vowed to herself all over again that she would never make the same mistakes.

“Thank you,” Joan whispered.

Zoey pulled away from Joan and surveyed the kitchen again.

“So how about we bake some cookies and then decorate the house together?”

Joan smiled and nodded.

“I’d like that.”

\-----------------------------------

A few hours later and Zoey and Joan were stood in front of the Christmas tree, proudly surveying their handiwork.

Gone were the chaos and mess of earlier, now the house looked like something out of a Hallmark channel holiday movie.

The kitchen was once again spotlessly clean, and the smell of freshly baked gingerbread cookies wafted through the air. The living room no longer looked like a Christmas bomb had exploded within it. The tree was tastefully decorated with complementary red and gold ornaments, and all that was missing was the star on the very top.

Zoey held it out towards Joan with a smile.

“Would you care to do the honours, as it’s your first Christmas tree in a while? Also because that tree is very tall and I cannot reach the top.”

Joan smirked, and before Zoey realised what was happening she had bent down and wrapped her arms around Zoey’s butt, lifting her clean off the floor as she straightened back up.

Zoey squeaked and grabbed on to Joan’s shoulders.

“There, now you can reach. I would like you to do the honours.”

Tentatively Zoey reached out and placed the star on the top of the tree, simultaneously terrified that she was about to fall, and also kind of turned on by how strong Joan was to be able to lift her up so easily.

“There, perfect!”

Joan loosened her grip and Zoey slid down her body, planting a quick kiss on her lips as she went by.

Once safely back on the ground, Zoey took Joan’s hand and led them over to the couch, immediately snuggling into Joan’s embrace as they sat down.

“Are you sure you won’t come to my parent’s house tomorrow for Christmas day?” Zoey asked, tracing patterns with her fingertips on Joan’s arm.

“I think it’s probably best you spend this one just with family, you all need to spend this time together. I’ll come next year.”

Zoey’s heart soared at the implication that Joan envisaged them still together in a year’s time. They hadn’t been together very long and hadn’t really talked about the future yet. Zoey already knew she was in this for the long run, and knowing that Joan felt the same way was the best gift she could think of.

She shifted herself round to face Joan and kissed her softly.

“It’s a date.”

She grinned and started to get up.

“Well, see you next year then!”

Joan laughed and grabbed her hand, pulling her back down on top of her.

“Hey where do you think you’re going? There’s still plenty of this year left to enjoy first.”

Zoey smiled and kissed her again.

“I suppose you’re right.”

Joan’s hands slid up under Zoey’s top, brushing over her abs and along the hem of her bra.

“Besides, you’ve been _such_ a good girl this year,” she purred, making Zoey tremble with desire, “I thought perhaps I would give you your gift a day early. Come upstairs in five minutes.”

With a monumental amount of willpower Zoey climbed off Joan, allowing her to get up off the couch and head upstairs, winking over her shoulder as she went.

Zoey watched her go, her heart full of so many emotions.

It was so strange how she could feel so blissfully happy and so sad all at the same time. She supposed that was how she would always feel from now on.

She bounced her feet, watching the seconds tick by on her watch. As soon as five minutes had passed she dashed upstairs as fast as her feet would carry her.

The sight that greeted her when she entered Joan’s bedroom was beyond any of her wildest fantasies.

Joan was wearing nothing but lacy red lingerie, the Santa hat still perched on her head. She held up a sprig of mistletoe over her head.

“Merry Christmas Zoey.”

And as Zoey launched herself at her girlfriend, she thought that Joan had definitely succeeded in giving her the perfect Christmas.


End file.
